As soon as the combat order was issued, the entire French army operated efficiently like a war machine. All the regiments began to prepare for departure, and the logistics system began to be overloaded. A large amount of supplies and ammunition were continuously transported from the country to Berlin, and then to the front line. The legion that was performing combat missions also received an order from Napoleon to speed up the progress, and launched a more violent attack on the remaining Prussian army.
On October 24, the Guards Corps, the 5th Corps and the 88th Corps set off from Berlin to Frankfurt, preparing to meet the upcoming Russian army. The 1st and 2nd Rhine Army will also drive to their respective defense areas in two days.
On October 25, the construction of the defense line centered on Frankfurt officially began. Xiao Jie divided the line of defense into three sections. Among them, the section extending 10 kilometers north and south from Frankfurt as the center is the defense line of the 88th Army, further north is the line of defense of the Guards Army, and to the south is the line of defense of the Fifth Army. The defense lines of the three divisions. The remaining two divisions of the 5th Army served as reserves. From Xiao Jie's arrangement, it can be seen that he placed the 88th Army in the most core position, but it is also the place that is most severely attacked. The legions didn't have any dissatisfaction with Xiao Jie's arrangement. On the contrary, they were somewhat grateful to Xiao Jie, because his arrangement could save them a lot of losses. Although they are very loyal to Napoleon, and all the troops belong to the empire, they will not feel at ease if the strength in their hands is gone. In this troubled world, basically no one can be relied on except oneself.
At the same time, the 88th Army is also the best equipped army among these armies. Mortars and heavy machine guns are equipped to the platoon level, and each squad has a sniper, and all of them are equipped with the latest 1806 rifles. Among all French regiments, only the Imperial Guard and Guards have a small number of heavy machine guns. The 1806-style rifle is only equipped with the Imperial Guard, the Guards Corps and the 1st and 2nd Legion. The other legions use the 1802-style rifle, which is extremely prone to failure and the barrel is quickly scrapped. Compared with other legions or even the armies of other countries, the 88th Army can be said to be armed to the teeth.
Putting the 88th Army in the most dangerous place is not because Xiao Jie is not afraid of the loss of the 88th Army, but because he trusts this army that he personally trained. At the same time, there was no way around it. Among the remaining legions, the 1st and 2nd Rhine Legions were basically used as cannon fodder, and it was impossible for them to defend such an important place. The combat effectiveness of the 5th Army is only in the middle of all the French Army's armies, and it still seems a bit reluctant for them to defend Frankfurt. The Guards Corps' fighting strength is enough, but they have just fought against the main force of the Prussian Army just now, leaving less than 40% of the original army, and the newly replenished army is still on the way to the battlefield. When it arrives, it will take a long time to train to form combat effectiveness. In this way, the only one that can defend the strategically important location of Frankfurt is the 88th Army.
Xiao Jie also knew that even if the 88th Army's powerful combat effectiveness faced the impact of the most powerful Russian Cossack cavalry in the process of defending Frankfurt, there would be heavy casualties, but it was better than losing the war. He is also the Crown Prince of the French Empire. If this war is lost, the Bourbon dynasty in exile in England will definitely be restored with the support of various countries, so the fate waiting for him is estimated to be imprisoned with Napoleon on an island in the Mediterranean or the Atlantic Ocean. . This is not alarmist talk. If they can't stop the Russian army here, with the terrifying impact of the Cossack cavalry and the more than 200,000 Russian infantry that are about to arrive, they can completely defeat and defeat the scattered French army. Annihilation, when the time comes to invade the mainland of France, it will be a breeze to destroy the Napoleonic Empire. If the legion is gone, it can be rebuilt. If the country is gone, it will not be easy to rebuild. So Xiao Jie made up his mind that even if the 88th Army was wiped out, he must hold the Frankfurt line of defense. However, if you want to fight off the 88th Army, you have to see if the Russian Army has that strength. Even if the 88th Army is killed, it will definitely cause heavy damage to the Russian Army. Once the French Army is assembled, Then the war will not be decided by the Russian army. In the end, the victory will still belong to France.
After the army arrived in Frankfurt, some of them camped, and the rest immediately began to build the defense line. From the Oder River to Frankfurt, there is a distance of about three kilometers. According to the plan put forward by Xiao Jie and the army staff, they will build three lines of defense within this distance. The first line of defense was built 100 meters away from the river. The Oder River, which is about 200 meters wide, provided them with the best barrier. Although the river was very shallow during this period, it could still cause considerable damage to the Russian army. In the river, they can't run as fast as they can on flat ground, which will become the best target for the soldiers of the 88th Army to practice marksmanship. The second line of defense is between Frank City and the first line of defense. Xiao Jie planned to dig three trenches here, and then set up two barbed wire fences 300 meters and 200 meters ahead. Everything was arranged just like the exercise in Chartres. At the same time, in order to provide favorable artillery support to the first line of defense, the artillery regiment will also be deployed on this line of defense. They will not withdraw to Frankfurt unless the first line of defense falls. I believe that their one hundred 75mm field guns will definitely be a nightmare for the Russian army. The third line of defense is the city of Frankfurt and its surrounding areas. The cavalry regiment and transport regiment also stay here, but the transport regiment is also responsible for the material consumption of the entire legion. Xiao Jie plans to wait for the arrival of the 1st and 2nd Rhine regiments and let them transfer some people to be responsible for the transportation of materials, so that the transport regiment It can also be thrown into battle.
At the same time, when arranging the guard troops on the three lines of defense, Xiao Jie also wasted a lot of effort. He put the first regiment with the strongest combat effectiveness on the second line of defense where there was no danger of defense, and then put the third regiment Put on the first line of defense, the last 2nd regiment defends the city of Frankfurt. Xiao Jie even made preparations for street fighting in Frankfurt. If the three lines of defense were breached, he would try his best to turn the city of Frankfurt into a battlefield, drag the enemy here as much as possible, and fight for the future. time.
On October 27th, the remaining 50,000 troops from the 1st and 2nd Rhine Army also arrived. Xiao Jie immediately divided them among the three lines of defense and asked them to join in the construction of the line of defense. These are free labor. No need to use it, at most wait until the defense line is built before letting them go back to it.
Watching the trenches being dug out and the firepower points being built one by one, Xiao Jie's confidence is also growing, but one thing that makes him dissatisfied is that even with the addition of the 1st and 2nd Rhine Army, the construction of the defense line The progress is still a bit slow, time waits for no one, if the Russian army launches an attack before their defense line is built, then they will be dead. I have to pray in my heart, let the Russian attack come later.
"It will probably take another two to three days." Eck replied. As the chief of staff of the legion, he was naturally in charge of the construction of their line of defense. And Xiao Jie and Du Geer are in charge of the formation of troops, and each has a division of labor.
"No, we don't have time. According to the information sent back, the Russian army is about to launch an attack in these two days." Xiao Jie became anxious when he heard that it would take two or three days to complete the defense line. "How much work has been completed on all fronts, we must speed up the progress."
"If you go by the time you mentioned, I don't think we have time to finish the construction. The first line of defense is only 60% complete now, and the second and third lines of defense are only 10% complete. Only fifty. The progress of the Guards Corps and the 5th Corps is slower than ours." Eke reported to Xiao Jiehui.
Xiao Jie thought for a while and then asked: "How many Prussians and strong laborers are there in Frankfurt now?"
Eck knew Xiao Jie's idea as soon as he heard it, and replied: "Because this place will soon become a battlefield, we have forcibly transferred the ordinary Prussians living here. There are still about 20,000 people. The strong laborers on the left and right can be devoted to the construction of the defense line."
"Well, you organize them immediately and put them all into the construction of the capital defense line. Don't forget to pay them when the work is completed. I don't want to arouse public resentment. Also, let everyone build the first line. The defense line, then the second defense line, and finally the third defense line. And inform the Guards Corps and the 5th Corps of this method." Xiao Jie ordered.
Eke was taken aback, and UU read www.uukanshu.com but then he understood: Yes, we don’t need to build three lines of defense at all. Anyway, the first line of defense is the first to be attacked by the enemy, so we can wait for the construction to be completed After the first line of defense is built, the other two lines of defense are being built. After saluting Xiao Jie, he went to issue orders. At the same time, Xiao Jie's status in his heart has been improved a lot. He is worthy of being His Royal Highness, the youngest general in the empire. This kind of good method can be imagined.
With the addition of 20,000 migrant workers and new construction methods, the progress of the defense line construction finally began to speed up. On the evening of the 27th, the first defense line was finally completed, and the soldiers of the 3rd Regiment could move in tomorrow morning. And now the Russian attack has not yet come, which makes Xiao Jie finally relieved.
It is estimated that the second defense line can also be completed on the 29th, and the third defense line will have to wait until the 31st. The progress of the other two defense lines is only a little slower than that of the 88th Army, and it is estimated that they can be completed as soon as possible. This line of defense was built completely in accordance with the requirements of the Code of Operations. The combination of foxholes and trenches, fixed firepower points to form intersecting blockade firepower, as well as anti-gun holes, ammunition storage holes, etc., were all built according to standard specifications. Xiao Jie was full of confidence in this line of defense. He believed that even the fierce Cossack cavalry would be bruised in front of it.
(to be continued,)